“If it gets approval in January, we hope to host the first NCAA flag football championship in the spring of 2028,” Dent wrote in a statement. Women’s flag football is among the fastest growing collegiate sports; nearly 400 colleges will compete in women’s flag football next spring, more than 130 of them at the varsity level. The effort paid off: Last month, Sacramento State announced it will launch a club women’s flag football team for this academic year. Costello said it seemed “natural” for Purdue Northwest to add women’s flag football to its list of sports, particularly as it gains popularity in the Midwest. The Ursuline College Women's Flag Football team poses for a team picture in the studio.